1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a substantially non-stretchable fabric having an edge region that is gathered by elastic elements incorporated in the edge region. More particularly, the invention concerns a package of such fabric wound up on a cylindrical core and its subsequent use as a skirt for a fitted mattress cover.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is well known to provide fabric packages in which a length of fabric is wound around a cylindrical core. Such conventional packages seldom present problems, as long as the fabric is uniform across its width and the opposite edges of the fabric are of equal length. However, problems are encountered when attempting to provide such packages for fabrics that have a gathered edge region. For example, Cohen, U.S. Pat. No. 4,148,441, describes a special package for winding a fabric that has a gathered edge region. The gathered edge region is formed by longitudinally extending elastic threads sewn under tension into that edge region, so that when the tension is removed, the edge into which the threads were stitched becomes gathered and substantially shorter than the opposite edge region in which there no such threads. Such fabric is used for example to make apparel skirts which have gathered stretchable waist regions. Cohen discloses a wound-up package of such fabric comprising a core which has opposed free end regions that are of different diameters and a tapered region between the regions of different diameter. The core includes tubular and finned portions. The core end region which is of the greater maximum dimension supports the fabric at its longer edge region.
A problem similar to the one addressed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,148,441 is encountered in the manufacture of certain fitted covers for mattresses. Most fitted mattress covers have a top panel of quilted or padded material, and a fabric skirt which is attached to and depends from the top panel. Typically, an elastic band is stitched under tension into the lower edge of the skirt to form a gathered lower edge region. The elastic band has sufficient tension to pull the skirt material under the mattress when the mattress cover is fit onto a mattress. However, in manufacturing and handling such skirt fabric, the fabric gathers along one edge of the fabric and become very difficult to wind evenly on a cylindrical core. Instead of a neat flat edged cylindrical windup, as is obtained with a uniform fabric, the wound-up fabric with one elastic edge region becomes “telescoped”. To avoid the telescoping problem, it has been a common practice in the manufacture of mattress covers to (1) prepare a wound-up roll of skirt material without any elastic edge region, (2) slit the material to appropriate width, and then (3) incorporate the elastic in the lower edge region as the material is unwound from the roll. However, when the resulting skirt fabric with such an elastic lower edge region is fed for attachment to the top panel to form a fitted mattress cover, the skirt material twists, deforms and rolls out of plane, which make attachment of the upper edge of the skirt to the top panel very difficult to accomplish neatly. The above-described problems are particularly evident when inexpensive conventional non-elastic fabrics are employed for the skirt material. Because of these problems in providing a uniformly wound-up skirt fabric having an elastic or gathered edge region, the cost and speed of manufacturing such fitted covers are detrimentally affected.
An aim of the present invention is to ameliorate the wind-up problems associated with skirt materials having a highly elasticized edge region and to decrease the costs of manufacturing fitted mattress covers.